Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1887-12-07

must necessarily produce, caused by con
dition of financial distress aad apprehension
since your last adjournment which taxed to
the utmost the authority and expedIents
within executive control. and these appear
row to be exhausted. If disaster results
from the continued lnactiou Of Congress the
responsibility must rest where it belongs
| Though the situation thus far considered Is
fraught with danger which should be fully
realized. and though ii presents features Of
wrong to the people well peril 10 the
country, it is but a result growing out of
| perfectly palpable and apparent cause con-
| .tantly reproducing the same alarming cir
| cumstances, a couges.ed national treasury
anil depleted monetary condition in the
! business Of the country. 1t need hardly be
| .tated that while the present SITUATION de-
| mands a remedy We can only be saved from
ike predicament in the future by the re-
| moval Of its cause. our
SCHEME OF TAXATION
| by means of which this needless surplus i
| taken from the people and put into the public
treasury consists of tariff or duty levied
upon inpOrtation- from abroad and internal
revenue taxes levied upon the consumption
| of tobacco and ,priterou- and malt liquors.
1t must be conceded that none of the things
subject To international revenue taxation,
are strictly speaking necessares; there APP
pears to be no just complaint of this taxation
by the consumers of these articles and there
seems to be nothing we'll able 10 bear the
burden without hardship to any portion of
the people Bat our present tariff laws, the
vicious inequitablc and illogical source of
unnecessary taxation, ought to be at once
revised and amended These laws as their
primary and plain effect, raise the price to
consumers of all articles imported and sub
pct 10 duty by precisely the sum paid for
such duties. Thus the amount of the
duty measures the tax paid by those who
purchase for use these imported articles.
/ Many of these things, however, are raised or
| manufactured in our own country, aud the
duties now levied upon foreign goods and
products are called protection to these home
manufacturers, because they render it posi-
bic for those of our people who are mann
facturcrs. to make these taxed articles
and sell them for price equal to that de
mandcd for the imported goods, that have
paid custom duty SO it appears that while
comparatively few use the imported arti-
Giles. millions of our people who never use
and never saw the foreign products, pur-
chase and use things of the same
kind made in this country, and pay. there
fore nearly. or quite the same cnharccd
price which the duty adds To the imported
articles. Those who buy imports pay the
duty charged thereon into the public treasury
but the great majority of our citizens who
buy domestic articles oil the same class pay q
sum at least approximately equal to the duty
to the home manufacturers This reference
to the operation of our tariff laws is not mad,
by way II instruction. but in order that we
] ln m lpI of tln mo -
which they impose burden upon those VIII,
consume domestic products, as well As those
who consume imported articles and thus
create lax upon all our people.
II IS not proposed to entirely relieve the
country of this taxation. II must be eS
tenSvely contributed as the source of the
government income and in an adjustment OF
the tariff the interest of American labor en-
gagged in manufacture. should be- carefully
c lnsidered as web as the preservation of oul
manufacturers. It may be called protection
or bv any other name, but relief from tn,
hAr,l.hips and dangers of our present tarit
laws should be devised with especial prccau
ton against impcrling the cxistenc.
of our manufacturing interests. But thu
existence should not mean a condition
which without regard to the public
welfare or a national cxigcncv mas
I Always insure thp feAlILatpn OF immense
profits instead of moderately profitable re
turns As the volume and diversity of our ma
tional activities increase, new recruits ar,
audited to those who desire u continuation OF
the advantages which they conceive the pres
cnt system of tariff taxation directly afford,
them So stuhbornly have all efforts to re-
form the present condition been resisted b,
those OF our fellow -cItizcns thus engaged, tina
they can hardly complain of the suspicion en-
tertaincd I" certain extent, That thor" eSiSt'
an organized combination all along'the line
Ia maintain their advantage.
We are in the midst of continual crlnhra
firms ami with hrcomin,r nri1,. vn r.;oioo !,
,,,er;,,u ain ,,a in,r,n,i,, il, ,,nor;,a,
,,,r.,,, .,,,I 'r,.,r,,ris,. ,,,I :, ,b.. ,,,rf,,
,..,'t ,Il.,,,,.t' .' WV l' y
''' 81 ''' '','' ''P''
ny o'uuH ua'l""'' crown l''' "t'h al
attempt Is mate I" JhSutN 'chfm' Whict
permits tax To be laid uponeNerN consume
IN the land for the benefit of orr mauutact
urcrs quite beyond a reasonable demand fo1
government regard. it suits the purposes OF
advocacy to all manufacturers of infant in